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an age of reform that eventually will lead to civil war
- 1. AnAge of Reform Mr. Fulks US History
- 2. Part 2: Literature and Arts
- 3. An American Literature Artists and writers helped create a new identity separate from Americans European past Early 1800s Literature Works of Historic and Contemporary conflicts and individualism RipVanWinkle The Legend of Sleepy Hollow The Last of the Mohicans Paul Revere’s Ride – Poem The Scarlet Letter Love, guilt, revenge, and judgement Moby Dick Allegory forAmericans’ obsession with wealth and westward expansion Poems Changed from “flowery, sentimental” poetry to “honest” writing about beliefs and experiences
- 4. The Transcendentalists Transcendentalism Transcending (rising above) the expectations society Path to spirituality = following one’s heart AND taking inspiration from nature, art, and literature Movement began in a New EnglandChurch Embrace feelings rather than texts/sermons Led to the support of other reforms Barriers toTranscendentalism Organized religion, restrictive laws and social institutions, and industrialization
- 5. The Transcendentalists Transcendentalism Utopian Communities Ideal/perfect Goal: Gather believers together to live in a way that was as close to ideal as possible Self-sustaining Most disbanded
- 6. The Transcendentalists Transcendentalism Leaders Ralph Waldo Emerson Incorporated Romanticism Emphasized imagination, emotion, and action Nature – Book Experiencing nature, leads one to grasp the divine, spiritual, or mythical aspects of life “Action, risk, and endeavor” = a true American scholar
- 7. The Transcendentalists Transcendentalism Leaders Henry DavidThoreau Best-known Walden: Life in theWoods Describes time living alone in harmony with nature in a cabin Civil Disobedience The purposeful breaking of a law that contradicts one’s conscience Louisa May Alcott Novels about family relationships and growing up as a female in 1800s Daughter ofTranscendentalist leader, Bronson Alcott Famous for novel, LittleWomen
- 8. Painters of Nature Ideas ofTranscendentalism and Romanticism influenced visual artists Increased paintings of the American landscape
- 9. Assignment Look at the paintings on the next slides. Information about the art is in the notes section. Pick one that you like and answer the following questions: What stuck out to you about this painting? What does the painting depict? Is the work a good example of early 19th century art? Why does it belong in this chapter?
- 11. TheOxbow
- 14. KindredSpirits
- 17. The Rainbow
Notes de l'éditeur
- Frederic Edwin Church had a clear purpose in mind when he put brush to canvas to paint Our Banner in the Sky in 1861. The Civil War had just begun, and Church wanted to commemorate the Union’s stand in the war’s first battle. The Battle of Fort Sumter took place from April 12 to 14, 1861, when the Confederates bombarded the South Carolina fort, occupied by a small garrison of 87 Union soldiers. Low on supplies and men, they were forced to surrender, saluting their battered flag on their departure. No one was killed during the battle, but the first shots had been fired, launching the war that would decide whether the United States would survive as one nation. Church’s landscape, depicting the flag within the natural world at sunset, seems to comment on the state of the country, perhaps announcing its natural righteousness, perhaps mourning its split. The painting is more blatant about its (not so) hidden meaning than most of Church’s art, but it is still representative of the Hudson River School, which is known for its landscapes that tend to show pride in the nation.
- The official title of this oil painting by Thomas Cole is View from Mount Holyoke, Northampton, Massachusetts, after a Thunderstorm. It is more commonly referred to as The Oxbow, however, after the u-shaped geographic feature it depicts. Cole was famous for imbuing meaning and metaphor into his landscapes. The Oxbow, for instance, can be viewed in its two halves—the left side, which shows nature as wild and untamed under a storm cloud, and the right side, which shows the natural world tamed by humans into peaceful, orderly farmland. Many art experts interpret this painting as an allegory of America’s westward expansion. An observant viewer will also notice that Cole also painted a tiny self-portrait of the artist at work at the bottom of his masterpiece. Can you see him? He’s seated with his easel amid the rocks just to the right of center at the bottom of the canvas.
- The artist behind this work—Thomas Doughty—was one of the first American artists to work exclusively in landscapes. He was self-taught, studying the landscape paintings of European artists that he found in museums and private collections. Before he turned 30, Doughty was making a living painting landscapes. Critics considered his work to be more romantic than the realistic landscapes of many of the other Hudson River School artists, but Doughty is still credited as an early leader of the movement. This painting—In Nature’s Wonderland—was completed in 1835, 15 years into Doughty’s painting career. It was painted during his most productive period and is one of his most famous works. During this period, Doughty traveled extensively, capturing the natural beauty of the Catskill and White mountains and the coasts of Massachusetts and Maine in his paintings. His feelings about nature as a “wonderland” are illustrated here by the small figure surrounded by the beautiful bluffs, forests, and shimmering light
- The Hudson River School art movement was named after the region the founding artists spent so much time exploring and painting. The artists did not limit themselves to the Hudson River Valley, however. Artists such as Albert Bierstadt, the painter of this picture, traveled far and wide to find the scenery that inspired them to make great art. Bierstadt was one of the later artists of the Hudson River School, exhibiting his work from the late 1850s until the end of the century. Bierstadt traveled widely in the western United States. He would make sketches and small paintings on his travels and then return to New York, where he would repaint the landscapes on large canvases in his studio. Bierstadt’s massive paintings inspired awe in art enthusiasts, most of whom would never have a chance to visit the American frontier. Passing Storm in Yosemite offers a good example of the golden lighting Bierstadt often portrayed in his dramatic landscapes of the mountains of the West.
- Kindred Spirits by Asher B. Durand is a prime example of the Hudson River School. This beautiful, realistic rendering of a landscape in the Catskill Mountains of New York depicts one of the movement’s founders: Thomas Cole. Cole is the figure on the right on the rocky ledge. The other is his good friend, the poet and journalist William Cullen Bryant. These men are not the only kindred spirits of the title. Durand himself was also a close friend to both men. He painted the picture in memory of Cole after his death in 1848. The men took many trips together to admire nature and sketch and paint the views they found. While the scenery in this painting looks realistic, the vista appears nowhere in nature. Durand combined two different views to form one idealized image. These composed landscapes, as they were called, were common among the Hudson River painters, but Durand shifted to more realistic landscapes after completing Kindred Spirits.
- Not every painting by a Hudson River School artist depicts an awe-inspiring, dramatic natural landscape. Some portray simpler scenes, such as this oil painting by Mary Blood Mellen, which shows the home in which the artist grew up. Mary Blood Mellen is one of several women artists who refused to be defined by traditional roles in the mid-1800s. These women explored the American wilderness as readily as the men, climbing mountains and wading through streams despite the inconvenience of traditional skirts. Mellen studied under a well-known painter named Fitz Henry Lane. Mellen and her mentor often painted the same scene from the same angle and even collaborated on some paintings, so their work is often compared and contrasted. They painted in a style called Luminism, which used subtle brushstrokes and focused on the way that light affects a scene. These characteristics, especially the importance of light, are evident in Mellen’s Blood Family Homestead.
- This dramatic scene was painted by Thomas Moran, who became world famous for his landscape paintings of the American West. These works revealed the beauty of the frontier to people who had never seen it. But Moran was not solely concerned with showing viewers what these locations looked like. He also wanted to communicate how he felt in the midst of them. Early in his career, Moran was influenced by the work of the English painter J.M.W. Turner, and he traveled to England in 1862 to study Turner’s landscapes. Moran didn’t paint A Mountain of Loadstone until years later—in 1898—but still Turner’s influence can be seen in the work. Turner is considered to be a predecessor of the impressionism movement. He used light, color, and atmosphere to create a feeling within the viewer. Turner was more concerned with creating emotion than with recreating a scene realistically. This goal can be seen in A Mountain of Loadstone—the crashing waves, spectacular light in the sky, and magnificent mountain in the background seem to blend into one another, and at a glance the painting can be seen more for its design elements—the colors and shapes—than for the scenery that it depicts.
- While the artist who painted The Rainbow—George Inness—was influenced by the Hudson River School, his work was considered more mystical and less concerned with realistic detail than that of the movement’s other artists. Works such as The Rainbow depict a less exotic scene than the dramatic landscapes of many Hudson River paintings. The Rainbow was completed in 1878, more than 20 years into Inness’s painting career. During this period, Inness was using color combinations and light to portray the spirituality that he believed existed in all things. The rainbow, the birds in flight, and the light shining through the clouds, illuminating the field, combine to bring a deeper meaning to this simple country scene.